Govt expects Rs 54K-cr in telecom services revenue this fiscal

Government expects to earn a total of Rs 53,937 crore from telecom services during 2014-15 fiscal, the Parliament was informed today.

"The budget estimates of revenue likely to be earned by the government during the current year: licence fee- Rs 13,520 crore, spectrum charges including auction- Rs 40,417 crore," Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said in a reply to a question in the Lok Sabha.

As per the data shared by Telecom Minister, government's revenue from licence fee grew about 12 per cent to Rs 12,450.43 crore in 2013-14 from Rs 11,088.8 crore in 2012-13. Licence fee earned by government in 2011-12 was Rs 11,101.5 crore.

In the first quarter of 2014-15, government has earned Rs 42.26 crore as licence fees.

The data showed government revenue from annual usage of spectrum increased by about 68 per cent to Rs 1,503.26 crore in 2013-14 from Rs 893.99 crore in 2012-13. In 2011-12, government had earned spectrum usage charge of Rs 987.85 crore.

In the first quarter of the ongoing fiscal, government has earned Rs 397.12 crore, as the government data.

To a separate query on whether some telecom operators have defaulted on paying dues and the action taken, Prasad stated that Loop Mobile has defaulted in paying its dues following which government has encashed Rs 50 crore financial bank guarantees and kept it under security deposits.